The Templar and the Apostate
by fearhim
Summary: "But I guess I'm an idiot, because I rather like being vexed by you." Alistair smiled looking down at her. Morrigan couldn't help the smirk that tugged at her lips. "On that we can agree."


A story I thought of while being sick and replaying Dragon age Origins. Really find Alistair and Morrigan cute together and thought I'd find more stories of them on here, but alas the pickings were slim so I had to try my hand at the task. Not sure with this game being as old as it is if anyone will even read this, but if you do leave a review and let me know what you think or if I made any errors. Thanks.

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"Well this is just how I always knew I would die; 500 feet underground in the deep roads completely alone and surrounded by hundreds of darkspawn ready to tear me limb from limb." Alistair's cynical voice complained out loud with his sword and shield in hand, encircled completely by a small horde of darkspawn.

"But wait, lucky me I get to share my final moments with the person in the world who despises me most." Alistair said before peering behind him at the black haired mage, Morrigan who was back to back with him with her staff in one hand and a ball of fiery magic in the other.

"I swear if you don't shut your trap you whining fool and focus on the task at hand, tis I who will kill you not these darkspawn." Morrigan threatened watching closely for any to break their ranks.

The two had got separated from the warden and Wynne while exploring the deep roads and before they knew it found themselves in this situation.

Suddenly two darkspawn, a genlock and alpha Hurlock, broke off and charged toward Alistair and Morrigan respectively.

"Switch!" Morrigan shouted as her and Alistair spun around each other.

Soon as she did Morrigan unleashed the ball of flame in her hand at the genlock killing it in its tracks as Alistair blocked a blow from the alpha Hurlock with his shield.

Turning halfway around Morrigan then stuck the end of her staff into the alpha's face electrocuting it as it screeched in pain.

Winding back his sword while it was stunned Alistair beheaded the alpha before knocking over its body with his shield.

The two quickly then fell back into position with their backs to each other.

The darkspawn screeched as more broke ranks and charged toward the two.

Morrigan would work on killing the ones from afar and Alistair the ones that got close as the two spun around each other in a flurry of bloodshed.

"Maker, we're actually winning." Alistair exclaimed in disbelief, breathing heavily through his mouth as there was a break from the darkspawn assault.

Morrigan unlike her dim witted compatriot opted on not wasting her breath speaking and instead focused on recouping her energy and watching the enemy as she took deep breaths through her nose.

They had managed to kill off only less than a quarter of their forces, but even so that was enough to make the remaining ones hesitate for the time being allowing them to catch a much needed breath.

Her icy yellow eyes narrowed in a glare, Morrigan's ears ached from the darkspawns screeches of rage as they thrashed about in frustration.

"I think we're actually going to make it out alive from this." Alistair's overly optimistic voice exclaimed.

Just then as if on cue, a loud pound shook the floor and then another and another.

"What is that….?" Alistair asked comically terrified as the darkspawn began to cheer in their shrill voices.

Morrigan's narrowed eyes widened slightly as she saw an ogre come into view walking through the mass of darkspawn that all made way for him.

Alistair let out a big gulp as the darkspawn encircling them all stepped back a couple steps so as not to get caught in the crossfire of their gigantic brethren.

Stopping about fifteen yards from them, the ogre then bent down with one palm on the floor, before charging toward them.

"Mooooove!" Alistair shouted as he broke right and Morrigan left.

Only she didn't get more than two feet before she felt a sharp pain shoot through the side of her left shin.

Falling over herself and onto her knees Morrigan dropped her staff a couple of feet in front of her as she tried to move forward to reach it only to be stopped again by the sharp pain resonating from her left shin again.

Looking back down at her leg Morrigan then saw what had caused her to fall over in the first place.

An arrow, that was halfway in the ground and other sticking out of the side of her shin.

Looking up from her shin she then saw a darkspawn Hurlock with a bow laugh maliciously as he lowered his weapon seemingly satisfied with his work.

Quickly turning her attention back to the arrow, Morrigan gripped it and tried breaking it, but to no avail.

It's not that she couldn't take the pain from the task; she was no stranger to pain after all.

It's just simply she lacked the physical strength needed.

She was slender, feminine, and dare she even admit it….physically inept.

She had always depended on her magic and without it she was…

Morrigan was snapped out of her thoughts by the loud pounding on the floor growing closer as she looked at the approaching ogre.

His eyes were that of a wild beast, his spit flying everywhere around his face as he roared, and his hands outstretched as he was only a couple of steps from reaching her.

Morrigan's hand tightly clenched around the arrow relaxed as she faced forward, bowing her head behind her hair and closed her eyes.

"So this was it, was it? Hmph, what a truly wretched existence." Morrigan smiled sadly resigning herself to her fate.

Just then Morrigan felt the arrow in her leg break, followed by a hand that squeezed her bottom?

Morrigan was then pushed forward by that same hand as she slid forward in the dirt.

Turning around Morrigan's eyes' widened in surprise.

Alistair…with his hand still extended out was being picked up by his torso by the ogre.

She locked eyes with him as his sad eyes filled with regret closed accepting his fate.

Turning around Alistair looked up and face the ogre who roared loudly in face dousing him with spit.

And for all Alistair's sarcasm and wit he didn't say a word, he only stared in fear.

Eyeing his prey the ogre then began to squeeze Alistair causing him to wince in pain.

The armor on his body began to bend and crack as he writhed.

"Cur!" A voice called out in a shout catching the ogre's attention as he stopped.

Turning his head halfway around Alistair watched as Morrigan rose to her feet leaning on her staff as support.

"Morrigan?" Alistair uttered out confused.

"I demand you drop that fool at once!" Morrigan shouted.

"Yeah, put me down you overgrown beast." Alistair shouted trying to intimidate the ogre which only served to anger it as growled at him.

"Heh-heh, please?" Alistair asked as the ogre glared at him before turning his attention back to Morrigan.

The ogre roared defiantly in response.

"Then prepare to die!" Morrigan shouted banging her staff on the ground as ripple of green energy went out through the floor.

The ogre and Alistair looked around and waited a couple of seconds, but nothing happened.

"Um, Morrigan nothing's happening..." Alistair said comically afraid as the ogre set his sights back on him.

Just then the ogre and Alistair's attention was brought above them as they heard the ceiling above them begin to crumble.

"Uh oh…" Alistair intoned before huge rocks began to visibly appear out of the darkness falling to the ground.

The ogre being hit in the head with one of the falling rocks roared before being hit with more as it dropped Alistair.

Alistair landed on his feet just in front of the ogre as it was quickly buried underneath a pile of debris.

Face filled with surprise, Alistair quickly did a check over himself with his hands.

"Ha-ha, I'm alive." Alistair exclaimed out loud ecstatic.

Just then more rocks began falling around him.

"Morrigan, you can stop now…!" Alistair said hands above his head cowering in fear.

"Tis the tunnel collapsing you fool, not my magic!" Morrigan shouted as the darkspawn surrounding them began to run in fear.

"Well what do we do?!" Alistair shouted panicking.

"Run you imbecile!" Morrigan turned away from him and began limping forward with her staff as a walking stick.

"Curse that old hag for not teaching me any healing spells!" Morrigan thought struggling to move faster than a brisk jog with her injury.

Just then Morrigan was swept off her feet and before she knew it she was in Alistair's arms as he ran with her.

"What-What do you think you're doing?!" Morrigan exclaimed in shock, her porcelain cheeks filling with a tint of red.

"Put me down this instant! I was just about to hit my stride!"

"Oh, please! I'm sure your mother could run faster with your leg the way it is!" Alistair shot back.

"Why you insufferable, hair brained-Watch out!" Morrigan shouted pointing ahead at the road ahead collapsing in front of them.

Hitting a fork in the road, Alistair began weaving right.

"Left, left, you fool! The right is a dead end!" Morrigan shouted yanking on Alistair's hair steering him in the right direction.

"Hey, that hurts! I'm not a bronto, you know!" Alistair shouted agitated.

"Of that you are right; they have far better instincts and are much less unpleasant to travel with." Morrigan scorned folding her arms.

"I can drop you, you know." Alistair threatened childishly.

"Tis a miracle you already haven't." Morrigan gibed.

Continuing to run with the ceiling collapsing behind him and Morrigan, Alistair began to run out of stamina.

"Can't you cast a spell to make us fly or something?!" Alistair shouted desperate his breathing becoming heavy.

"Oh yes, Alistair, it's just I enjoy being in your big strong arms so much that I rather be buried to death then do so." Morrigan said her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Ha, knew it!" Alistair snickered.

"Even a child would have picked up on that sarcasm!" Morrigan blushed infuriated.

"Well can you at least do one thing to help me?" Alistair asked conciliating.

"And that is?" Morrigan asked dubiously with narrowed eyes looking up at him.

Alistair looking forward uncomfortably had a small blush on his cheeks before his eyes quickly glanced down.

"Oh, for the love of everything-!" Morrigan blushed self-conscious covering up her chest with her arm.

"You would think with death closing in on us, you would be more focused on surviving then sneaking a peek."

"Well it's kind of hard not to notice when they're bouncing around in that rag you call a blouse." Alistair defended.

"So now it is my fault you can't control your carnal desires for my body." Morrigan mocked.

"Don't flatter yourself; I was just trying to salvage your dignity for you." Alistair said snubbed.

"How chivalrous." Morrigan scoffed.

There was a moment of silence between the two, before Alistair could have sworn he heard her whisper.

"Tis that I'm not attractive?"

"What did you just-?" Alistair asked surprised looking down at her.

Her head was bowed with her bangs covering her eyes and her lips curled into a frown.

"Maker, she actually looked-" Alistair thought, before a stray piece of rubble falling from the ceiling hit his head.

Stumbling forward, he managed to regain his footing as he sped up a little.

"Dam it!" Alistair cursed as a stream of blood began oozing down from the top of his head and over his right eye impairing his vision.

Feeling a soft hand over his forehead, Alistair was able to open back up the eye as he looked down at Morrigan who held her hand there whilst looking forward.

"Not a word." She threatened.

Complying, Alistair looked back ahead.

"How long is this blasted road?" Alistair complained his footsteps becoming heavier.

Looking behind him at the collapsing ceiling getting closer and closer and then back at Alistair's exhausted face, Morrigan could tell…

"Drop me." She uttered evenly.

"What?!" Alistair exclaimed.

"I am weighing you down and I am of no use to you." Morrigan stated.

"What? No…You're uh, oh, you're tending to my wound." Alistair said lamely.

"Do not patronize me; your handkerchief could just as easily replace me." Morrigan snapped at him.

"But what if I had to blow my nose then? I would have to do it into a bloody handkerchief, gross." Alistair exaggerated.

"You simpleton, I demand you drop me this instance!" Morrigan commanded.

"For saying it like that, no, I'm not gonna." Alistair said with childlike defiance.

"Alistair!" Morrigan shouted.

"No." Alistair said pouty.

Coming upon an intersection in the road, two darkspawn, one genlock and one Hurlock, who were also trying to outrun the collapsing tunnels spotted Morrigan and Alistair as they bickered childishly with the ceiling collapsing just a couple feet behind them.

"Yes!" Morrigan shouted.

"No." Alistair replied pouty.

The two repeated themselves continuously as they passed the darkspawn without notice.

"Kaaaah?" The Hurlock asked confused turning to the smaller genlock.

"Kaaaagh." The genlock replied angrily.

"At the rate we're going we're both surely to die, so it makes little to no sense to continue when at least one of us can survive if you just simply dispose of me right now." Morrigan reasoned.

"You realize you're talking about yourself, right? About dying, no less?" Alistair asked.

"Tis not ideal I admit, I would much rather be the one leaving you to certain death." Morrigan stated.

"Gee, thanks." Alistair said insulted.

"If you will not drop me then I will simply do so myself." Morrigan declared.

"If you do, I'll tell everyone else before you died you declared your undying love for me and gave me a big fat kiss." Alistair threatened childishly.

"No one would ever believe such blatant lies!" Morrigan objected.

"Oh really, are you truly ready to take that chance?" Alistair asked smugly.

"You…You are truly unbearable, are you aware of this?!" Morrigan shouted.

"Why do you insist on this matter so? What do you hope to obtain? My gratitude and affection? Recognition from our companions?" Morrigan prodded.

"I can assure you, you will get none of these things."

"You have got to be the worst damsel in distress in all of history." Alistair bemoaned.

"And yet still you carry me. Why?" Morrigan asked confounded.

"If I tell you do you promise to stop giving me a hard time about this?" Alistair asked.

"I make no promises, but it cannot hurt your chances." Morrigan said.

Alistair let out a deep sigh.

"Because it would be boring." He uttered out reluctantly.

"Boring?" Morrigan repeated confused.

"What would be boring, I do not understand, explain." She commanded.

Alistair sighed again a bit deeper this time.

"Everything." He said.

"Without you around, life just wouldn't be as exciting."

Morrigan looked at him taken aback.

"You find my company exciting…?" She asked baffled.

"Among other things that aren't so pleasant, yes." Alistair admitted wryly.

"I always thought you found me vexing." Morrigan said looking away.

"Oh trust me I do." Alistair grinned causing Morrigan to look back up at him.

"But I guess I'm an idiot, because I rather like being vexed by you." He smiled looking down at her.

Morrigan couldn't help the smirk that tugged at her lips.

"On that we can agree."

Just then Alistair spotted something out of the corer of his eye as he looked up ahead of him.

"Maker, am I seeing things or is that an exit?" Alistair motioned up ahead.

Looking forward, Morrigan could see off in the distance a chasm in the wall leading out of the main roads.

"You're not mistaken; it's about fifty yards ahead." Morrigan said perking up before turning back to Alistair.

He was trying not to show it, but she could tell he was running on fumes at this point.

She wasn't heavy, just a little over a hundred pounds, but every step with her must have felt like he was carrying a boulder that just got larger and larger.

Alistair was never one who was known for his endurance.

"Are we there yet, it feels like we've been walking for hours." Alistair moaned trudging his feet along a wooded path alongside his companions.

"Alistair we just picked up camp five minutes ago, you can still see it from where we're walking." The warden Aedan smiled pointing behind them.

"But my feet hurt." Alistair moaned.

"Would you quit your incessant whining for five minutes you fool." Morrigan snapped at him.

"Easy for you to say, all you carry around is those rags on your body, I have to lug around this heavy armor." Alistair complained.

"Do you ever stop complaining?" Morrigan droned at her wits end.

"That depends what day is it?" Alistair asked.

"Friday." Wynne responded weary.

"Nope, it's only every other Sunday that I like to take a break from my complaining and wail loudly and uncontrollably." Alistair declared.

"I will give you something to wail about." Morrigan fumed.

"Ow, warden, Morrigan's throwing stuff at me." Alistair whined.

"What was motivating him to keep going?" Morrigan wondered.

"Was it basic instinct to survive? To fulfill his duty as a grey warden?"

"No…If it was he would have dropped her in favor of those things."

"Wait, it couldn't be that she was his…?"

Morrigan didn't have a chance to finish the thought as her attention shot to the ceiling as pockets of it began falling down in the form of small bits of rubble.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me! Cover your head!" Alistair shouted as he knew he couldn't stop lest they be crushed from the collapsing ceiling just a couple of feet behind them.

Bracing himself, Alistair closed his eyes expecting to feel pain.

The sound of rubble falling off of something just above his head caused him to open back up his eyes as he looked up to see what it was.

There was a white almost translucent barrier above his head.

"Was this...?" Alistair thought looking back down at Morrigan.

Her face had a look of intense concentration on it as she held up her staff in the air.

"I don't know how long I will be able to hold this…Tis extremely difficult…" Morrigan grunted out.

"Just a bit further." Alistair reassured.

Morrigan honestly didn't know if he was saying that for himself or for her.

As they continued to run, Alistair could see Morrigan wince and her staff lower slightly every time her magical barrier took a blow from the debris.

Only ten more yards…

Alistair panted his legs threatening to buckle.

Five more yards…

Made it, he dove into the chasm in the wall as the entrance behind him was sealed almost immediately with debris.

As soon as they were in Alastair collapsed to his knees, letting Morrigan down gently, before falling on his back panting.

"Can't…feel…legs…" Alastair panted out as Morrigan leaning on her staff breathed heavily as well.

Trying to get it under control, Morrigan after a couple moments noticed the sound of Alistair's breathing cease.

"Alistair?" She called breathlessly looking up and over to him.

He lay still unresponsive, neither his chest nor any other part of him moving.

Dropping her staff she stumbled over to him.

Kneeling over him she could see his eyes were closed and his head still bleeding from the wound on his head.

Morrigan felt a strange feeling in her chest as if her heart had fallen.

"Wake up, tis no place to be napping." Morrigan said a hint of fear in her voice as she shook his shoulder.

His entire body was limp.

Morrigan began to lose control of her breathing again as she quickly picked up his head and cradled it.

"Alistair, Alistair!" She called shaking his body, feeling her throat begin to constrict making her voice crack.

She stopped as truth set in and tears began to well up in her eyes.

"You cannot do this…The warden is still in need of you…The world is still in need of you…" She voiced shakily.

"You cannot expect the blight to be stopped by one single grey warden."

"You hear me, you cannot die you big oaf…" Morrigan plead.

Bowing her head with her bangs covering her eyes, Morrigan began to recall all the squabbles she had with Alistair.

"Life would be so terribly peaceful without you…" She uttered distraught.

Suddenly Alistair let out a breath.

Morrigan's eyes shot open as she jerked her head up.

"Hey, what's all the racket, I'm trying to sleep." Alistair said weakly.

"Gah, you fool, I thought you were dead." Morrigan exclaimed relieved with a teary smile and as sniffle.

Opening his eyes wearily, Alistair looked at Morrigan's teary face so very close to his.

"Hey…" His voice uttered softly brushing his hand against her teary cheek gently.

Locking eyes with one another, the two leaned into one another slowly, before joining their lips together in a deep kiss.

"Ahem."

Morrigan's and Alistair's eyes shot open as they jerked back from one another and looked at where the exclamation came from.

To both of their horrors it was none other than the warden with Wynne by his side.

"Sorry to interrupt, but are you two okay?" The warden asked with a smile.

"Oh fine, fine, we were just…" Morrigan stood up abruptly trying to think of a logical excuse.

"Inspecting each other's tongues." Alistair quipped earning a swift back kick on the leg from Morrigan as she blushed.

"So you two finally let it all out in the open it appears." Wynne remarked impartial.

"About time." The warden smiled.

"Wait, I….you all expected this?" Morrigan asked embarrassed.

"The way you two went at each other like a old married couple it was hard not to see how you two felt about one another." Wynne explained.

"And although I can't say I approve the relationship, I suppose it can't be helped." She sighed.

"We wish you two the best." The warden smiled.

"I…I cannot believe this, you all…" Morrigan fumed.

"Just go see to his injuries, before he expires for real this time." Morrigan commanded as Wynne smiled walking over to Alistair.

"You do care." Alistair teased Morrigan.

"Oh, be quiet, you fool." Morrigan blushed.

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Not sure if I'll continue this story, but let me know if I should or shouldn't.


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